176 Allen's naturalist's library. 



dark chestnut. Legs orange-red. Total length, 14-16*8 inches; 

 wing, 8-8-io*2 ; tail, 3*6-4*i ; tarsus, 2-55-3'o. 



Range. — Extending in the west to the Kangeang Archipelago 

 and thence eastwards through Lombock, Flores, Sumba, 

 Banda, Kei, Aru, Salawatti, Western and Southern New 

 Guinea, and the islands of Torres Straits to North-east 

 Australia. 



As might be expected with a species occupying so wide a 

 range, considerable differences are to be found on comparing 

 examples from Flores and Lombock {M. gouldi, Gray) with 

 those from Australia, the former being smaller and much 

 lighter in colour than the latter. But these differences are so 

 entirely bridged over by specimens from the intermediate 

 islands, that it is impossible to regard them as being specifi- 

 cally distinct, the two extremes passing imperceptibly into 

 one another. 



Habits. — The following interesting notes are extracted from 

 Gilbert's account of the habits of this species as observed by 

 him in Northern Australia. He says : — " I landed beside a 

 thicket, and had not proceeded far from the shore ere I came 

 to a mound of sand and shells, with a slight mixture of black 

 soil, the base resting on a sandy beach, only a few feet above 

 high water mark ; it was enveloped in the large yellow-blos- 

 somed Hibiscus, was of a conical form, twenty feet in circum- 

 ference at the base, and about five feet in height. On point- 

 ing it out to a native and asking him what it was, he replied, 

 " Oooregoorga Rambal," Megapode's house or nest. I then 

 scrambled up to the sides of it, and to my extreme delight 

 found a young bird in a hole about two feet deep ; it was lying 

 on a few dry, withered leaves, and appeared to be only a few 

 days old. . . . 



"As it fed rather freely on bruised Indian corn, I was in 

 full hopes of rearing it ; but it proved of so wild and in- 

 tractable a disposition that it would not reconcile itself to such 



